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Re:A New Experiment Casts Doubt on the Leading Theory of the... by godelski on Monday June 12, 2023 @10:28PM (#36304383)
Experimental physics works a bit differently than most people think. While string theory was/is popular, very few hold it as certainty. From the very beginning the discussions around it were that it was a non-testable theory. While out-group conversations around physics are "physicists believe" in-group conversations are more "the leading theory is". Uncertainty is deeply ingrained in the study and the focus is more around making our knowledge less wrong rather than proving something correct/making our knowledge correct. Subtle, but notably different. It is the reason you always see quotes with qualifiers like "should" or "we think" and rarely certainty (easy to miss if you aren't looking).

These distinctions matter when you create experiments and interpret results. They generally don't matter to the layman, since an authoritative answer is good enough. But they do matter if you need to do any form of evaluation, as essentially what I'm talking about is the importance of including error and uncertainty. Which btw, particle physics often has a uniquely tight bound: 5 sigma. You'll even notice CERN's blog post about 5 sigma has lots of qualifiers, does not suggest it claims certainty, how it isn't alone enough, and even references that there are good arguments for even higher bars. It's a different language than people are used to.

https://home.cern/resources/faqs/five-sigma

Re:A New Experiment Casts Doubt on the Leading Theory of the... by jfengel on Tuesday June 13, 2023 @09:53AM (#36310252)
I don't get why the arguments are confined to string theory. The standard model plus general relativity are so good that any theory that resolves the conflict is necessarily only testable when you've got a stellar mass black hole in your lab.

That could be a call to stop bothering with exploring the domain entirely as infeasible. But I don't understand why string theory gets singled out for finger waggling when any other theory must run into the same problem.

Re:A New Experiment Casts Doubt on the Leading Theory of the... by godelski on Tuesday June 13, 2023 @12:58PM (#36313167)
No serious physicist only considers String Theory. That's part of the point I was making. Really String Theory is only a guide used while we wait for something better and more testable to come along. Nothing is set in stone, they are just guides to being less wrong.